Timeless
by Keltena
Summary: There are moments when all we can do is sit back and see the beauty around us. Sometimes, time itself seems to stand still. Here, these breathtaking moments are captured for all eternity. Done for 30 Breathtakes on LiveJournal. Laharl/Flonne.
1. Free

**Free**

_theme – wind in your hair_

The wind blows harder in Celestia.

Where the open fields are not contained by walls and the air is not stifled by decay, the wind blows.

It blows harder than in the Netherworld, harder than in the human world... harder than in all the alternate Netherworlds that could be visited in a single lifetime.

In Celestia, beneath the clear sky and above the eons-old ground, the wind blows free.

It blows through the grass and through the trees, and across the large expanses of empty space. It blows past the angels as they go about their daily routines, catching and pulling on their hair and clothes.

Today, the wind blows over a demon.

The young demon is short, wiry, and minimally clothed. What clothes he wears are pressed to his body, and his scarf, the only protection his upper body has from the elements, streams out behind him. His hair, short as it is, blows back from his face as he stares into the wind, antennae bent back almost straight behind him.

All in all, it makes for a very dramatic image.

Behind the demon, an angel runs up, her youth made evident by the tiny wings barely visible under her waist-length blond hair as the wind tangles it, tugging on the blue ribbons on her outfit and in her hair. Her arms wrap around her body as she skids to a stop next to the shorter figure.

They've made it to Celestia. The end of their journey is drawing near.

The angel stares up at the skies of her birthplace, and back down at the healthy grass and shining stone paths, and, looking to the young demon next to her, wonders when they'll be able to go home.


	2. Warm

**Warm**  
_theme - sun on your face_

Sunlight looks natural on her, like stars in the night sky or dewdrops on the morning grass, as her head tilts up to look at the bright midday sky. Something is missing.

The sunlight warms the fields of Celestia and gently coaxes open eyes that have been squinting in the darkness of the Netherworld for months or for hundreds of years. Nature's beauty, long ago lost in most worlds, has been preserved perfectly here since the dawn of time.

She is facing almost straight into the sun, eyes half-closed and hands clasped near her chest. From the top of the hill, she is being watched almost analytically. Something is still missing.

Footsteps sound closer and closer to her as she closes her eyes, tilting her head back farther. Her hair nearly glows in the sunlight; her skin is tinted with a warm, almost yellow aura, and the color of blue against white is vibrant on her clothing. The picture is still incomplete; lacking.

A voice, brash against the quiet veil of nature's noises, calls out to her as the footsteps slow to a stop by her side. Wide blue eyes snap open, her face turns away from the sun... and in that moment, the scene is lost.

The smile she replies with lights up her face in a way the sun never could, and suddenly, the moment has been perfected.


	3. Hidden

**Hidden**_  
theme – the look in your eyes_

His eyes are the most expressive part of his body.

Oh, he can smirk or scowl all he wants, and it's always clear what emotion he intends to convey. His arms cross when he's impatient and sometimes when he's satisfied, and his entire frame stiffens when he's taken by surprise and relaxes when he's comfortable or bored. Even his hair expresses how he's feeling, with his antennae standing straight on end when he's angry.

That's all different from what his eyes show. If he wants to look pleased or disdainful, he always does, almost right down to the last detail... but somehow, his eyes give away the rest. He can tell her completely straight-faced that he hates her, that he never loved his father, that demons don't need love anyway, and at first, she believed it. Now, whenever he says that, she can look closer and see, in his eyes, emotions that seem contrary to the ones he's presenting to her. Doubt is there, and even sadness, and when she sees the way he tries to cover it up, it makes her wonder if he even realizes it himself.

She's glad that that's not all she can see. Nearly all of the time, whether he's acting boastful or annoyed or bored, there's something else shining through, clearer than anything she's ever seen. Fierceness, pride, and determination – that's what she sees when she looks into his eyes, and it's somehow uplifting to know that someone who acts the way he acts really cares so much, even if it's about all the wrong things.

At times like that, he always asks her why she's smiling. She's never told him the real reason.


End file.
